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What I Do To Get Your Home Sold...
MY 27 POINT MARKETING PLAN
Selling a house in today's challenging real estate market requires more than just a sign in the yard and an ad in the newspaper. With 78% of buyers now starting their home search on the Internet, you need a technology-based marketing approach designed to expose your home to the maximum number of qualified buyers. And, since over 85% of all qualified buyers work with a real estate agent, you need your property marketed to all the brokers and agents.
Here is the market plan I use to get homes sold fast and for top dollar, usually before any other homes in the neighborhood currently listed sell. I am so confident you will be happy with my service and the results I create for you, that I will give you my written Guarantee of Service that says “If you are not completely satisfied with my efforts, you may cancel the listing at any time and at no cost!”
My goal is the same as yours -- to attain the highest price for your home in the shortest time and with the least inconvenience to you.
1. Preparing Your Home
To command a premium price, you must put your home in top condition prior to placing it on the market. We will spend several hours staging your home, and I will give you specific guidance on how to prepare your home, both prior to going on the market and before a showing so your home will sell itself. Just like going on a date, 1st impressions are most important – and we want to look our best!
2. Property Profile.
Each property has its own personality. Typically, the same reason you fell in love with your home and bought it, and the way you live in it will be the same features that the next buyer falls in love with and how they want to live in a home too. I will create a Property Profile to analyze the strengths of your home and do specialized target marketing to attract the perfect buyer for the unique features of your home.
3. Timing.
Most agents simply put a new listing on the market whenever it is signed, and then dribble out bits & pieces of marketing over the next few weeks and months.
I do the shotgun approach to marketing: Every piece of marketing material is sent out for a blitz campaign the very first week, blasting information on your home out to every potential buyer possible.
Ideally, I like to enter the home into the MLS and mail out postcards on a Thursday, then hold an open house the first Sunday. Agents will start previewing homes on Thursday & Friday that they might want to show their clients on the weekend. Buyers often ask me how long a home has been on the market. By placing your home in the MLS on Thursday, it has only been on the market for 4 days at the open house, offering you the best negotiating leverage.
4. 1,000 Postcards Mailed Out.
8-10% of all homebuyers know someone who lives within two blocks of the house they buy. I will create interest in the surrounding neighborhood by mailing out 500 “Just Listed - Open House Invitation” postcards. In the past few years, I sold 8 of my own listings to neighbors that weren't even looking for a home or planning on making a move, but came to the open house out of curiosity and fell in love.
Typically, "move-up" buyers purchase a home that costs 50% more than their current home. I will determine which neighborhoods would have owners or renters that may be interested in your home so I can make sure they are aware of your property. A direct mailing of 500 postcards will be sent with information and photographs of your home, inviting them to the first open house.
5. Broker's Open House.
Time permitting, I will hold an open house (with catered lunch & cash or gift certificate drawings) for all agents in the area to tour your home at a “Sneak Preview” on the Tuesday before your home goes into the MLS. In addition to creating advance excitement and interest in your property and having buyers know about your home before it goes on the market, this will also reduce the number of agents who will straggle through your home to preview once it goes on the market.
6. Marketing To Agents.
I will have a flier personally delivered to 5,000 local agents inviting them to the Brokers Open house and update the Realtors to any changes in your property status, terms or pricing.
7. Open House
Our first open house is the MOST important. I advertise in as many local publications as possible to generate the most traffic the first weekend, and place directional signs leading to your home from every possible access route. A sign will be placed on top of your yard sign early in the week announcing that the home will be open Sunday from 1 to 4 to bring the drive-by prospective buyers back.
8. Newspaper & Magazine Advertising.
I advertise ALL of my listings EVERY WEEK in the Washington Post and the Falls Church Press, not just when it’s open or just listed. I advertise in community newspapers and other publications such as the Wall Street Journal and the International Herald Tribune as appropriate.
9. The Internet.
Out-of-town buyers account for many home sales in Northern Virginia. The Internet promotes your property worldwide, 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. Your home will be featured on www.VirginiaHomeTeam.com, www.REMAX.com, www.Realtor.com, www.HomesDatabase.com, other major real estate sites on the Internet, and all local Realtor search engines.
10. Digital Photography.
I will take between 30-50 digital photos and virtual tours of your property and the surrounding area for use with the Internet, virtual tours, e-mail, brochures and postcards. I upload 20 photos in the MLS and 12 photos & virtual tours on my website for each listing, allowing potential buyers the opportunity to preview each room of your home right from their computer.
11. Virtual Tours.
I will design a virtual computer tour for your home to include up to twelve areas of your home in up to 360 degree videos and up to 12 digital photos, which creates an open house 24 hours per day, 7 days a week. A hyperlink to your virtual tour will be E-mailed to you, scores of buyer prospects, and hundreds of top local real estate brokers. Many buyers will have seen your virtual tour before they ever step inside your home, and will already like the looks of it. In the past, I received FOUR contracts on my listings from out of state buyers that were comfortable enough with what they saw online to fax in a contract to buy the home without personally visiting it!
12. Custom Brochure.
I will create a custom brochure including multiple color photos, plat maps and floorplans if available, and a list of features to emphasize all of the best amenities of your home. The idea is to make the best possible impression so that after seeing dozens of homes, buyers will remember yours! My desktop publishing software allows me to design and print brochures within hours, not days or weeks like many other agents that have to send their brochures out for design & printing that takes weeks to get back.
13. Individual Business Cards of Your Home
Individual full color business card sized fliers of your home will be with the brochures in your home, allowing potential buyers to carry all the information they need about your home in their wallet or purse. Buyers love these cards – they proudly show their friends and family their “new” home even before they have decided to make an offer! It also allows you to hand out information on your home to your friends and colleagues that might know someone looking to buy.
14. Home Book.
Not all agents will be knowledgeable about your home and the area. A home book customized for your home and neighborhood will answer buyer questions about the property, community facilities, schools, shopping, distance to transportation and the surrounding area. Buyers often sit at the table and read the entire book.
15. Snack Basket
Many buyers (and agents) get grumpy and hungry when out looking at homes. I provide a basket loaded with individually packaged snacks, offering a welcome treat. Since buyers won’t want to track crumbs through your home, they will linger while they eat, allowing them to get a better sense of what it would be like to live in the home.
16. Wall Signs
Wall signs will be strategically placed around your home, highlighting features that buyers should be aware of, such as new appliances, dates of remodeling and upgrades. These cards answer questions that the buyers might be wondering.
17. LockBox
The electronic lockbox provides state of the art security for your home while ensuring it is accessible for agents to bring their qualified clients. Statistically, you will get 40% more showings by using a lockbox. I receive daily updates with a list of the Realtors that have shown your home using the lockbox, allowing me to call them for feedback and answer any questions their buyers might have.
18. Agent Feedback
After each showing, I call the agent, thank them for showing your home and ask for feedback from them and their client. This allows me to answer any questions they may have had and help overcome any obstacles that might have prevented them from writing a contract, and has resulted in many contracts on my listings. As an example, one buyer needed a 120 day settlement and had assumed that my seller wanted a quicker sale. By following up with the agent, I expressed my sellers desire for a longer settlement, and the buyer wrote an offer that was accepted. I will keep you informed of the status and level of interest of each buyer that views your home.
19. Multiple Listing Service.
I will submit the details of your property along with 20 interior and exterior color photos to the Multiple Listing Service system. Information on your home will be available 24 hours per day to agents and buyers across the country.
20. Sign.
By having my direct phone number on the signpost in your yard, I can personally answer buyer’s questions and schedule an appointment to show your home once they've been pre-approved by a reputable lender. Most companies have their main office phone number, which is answered by a receptionist or a new agent that most likely hasn’t even seen your home. Additionally, I display our webpage address for people to view the interior photos and virtual tours of your home and riders announcing when the next open house is scheduled.
21. Brochure Box.
A brochure box on the signpost in front of your home allows the drive-by buyer to pick up my FULL COLOR brochure that may excite them to call for a showing. Traditionally, if a buyer has driven through your neighborhood, has seen the flier with the price and details of the home, they are almost sold on your home when they call to see inside. I use durable hard plastic boxes with a spring loaded lid that snaps closed to keep the rain out.
22. Directional Signs
Arrow signs pointing the way to your home will be strategically placed at all crossroads leading to your home. As a courtesy to the property owners at each sign location, I always stop and ask permission, or leave a note with my contact information in the event they aren’t home and do not want a sign placed in their yard. This reduces the number of signs that end up “missing,” and even allows me to have signs up in many communities that prohibit signs.
23. Relocation Buyers.
RE/MAX works with thousands of real estate firms across the country to promote your property to buyers even before they arrive in town for their first house-hunting trip. I can also interview agents to find the best fit for you in the area you are moving to.
24. Status Reports.
You will receive daily or weekly status reports that include any changes in market conditions, new properties listed or sold in your neighborhood, financing updates or trends in the real estate industry, current and upcoming advertising. This way we can adjust the marketing strategy as necessary. You may choose whether you prefer the reports to be via telephone, mail, or e-mail.
25. Negotiating.
I am an expert at negotiating the best price, terms and conditions to meet your needs, and have been able to bring many contracts to successful settlement when others thought it would never happen.
26. Pricing.
Pricing your home is the single most important decision we will make as a team. I say “we” because it needs to be a mutual decision. I will present you with all of the data and information on the current market and prices – the same information that buyers will see from the agents representing their best interest. Together we will determine the best price so that a buyer and his or her agent will feel that your home is priced fairly compared to all the other homes they have seen. A buyer will write an offer on his second choice home that is priced right before he will lowball a seller on his favorite home. In choosing the agent to represent you in the sale of your home, you should choose the agent that you feel will do the best job to market your home and negotiate the best possible terms and price.
27. Other Tricks.
My “whatever it takes attitude and out of the box thinking” to sell your home blends unique marketing ideas and strategies with the best marketing program for your home. We will discuss all the possible creative financing options and marketing solutions available to us. In slower markets, I have completed many sales by using creative financing that worked for both parties. Think about what you want to do with the cash from the sale of your home. If you are moving up, buying a second home, beach or mountain property or looking to invest, we can promote whatever it is that you would consider taking in trade for the down payment, or carry the loan for monthly income. Ask, and you might just get it.
Why its important to price your home at its actual value:
· Since an appraisal is required in financing a property, its futile to price a property for more than its worth…it wont appraise!
· Most buyers are comparison shopping. If your home is overpriced, looking at your home may convince them to make an offer on a comparable home that is priced right instead of offering you a price lower than your asking price.
· Many potential buyers won't look at overpriced homes, thinking its out of their price range.
· When first listed, you will get more showings and receive more offers (and often times multiple offers or bidding wars) if priced “right”.
· Realtors are less likely to show an overpriced home.
· Overpricing usually results in a longer time on the market and homes become “shop worn”, causing buyers to think something is wrong with the house, resulting in a lower selling price.
· If selling “By Owner”, most appraisers take the commission into consideration and reduce or adjust the appraised value accordingly.
Please provide me with the following information when I list your home:
· Information on easements or assessments
· Loan information - Lender's name, loan number and their toll free phone number
· Your social security numbers and dates of birth
· Property taxes/condominium or homeowner's dues or fees
· Any inspection reports you have had done - lead paint, roof, termite, etc.
· Age of all appliances and systems in the home
· Dates of any improvements or remodeling
· Utilities - past 12 months of bills including gas, electric, sewer, water and garbage.
· House location survey, bylaws or homeowner's association documents, house plans, and home warranties
· Personal property to be included or excluded (Any thing built into the home automatically conveys, such as a dining room chandelier, unless specifically excluded)
· Any items that are to be conveyed in "As-Is" condition
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